The Fog of War
Just southeast of Geneva is buried one of humanity's greatest engineering accomplishments, the Large Hadron Collider. Miles of particle accelerator in a great ring beneath the rocky soil of Switzerland hum with power, revealing the innermost secrets of physics. But, on occasion, things do break down, and when they do CERN quickly repairs them with no expense spared. After Breakdown's covert arrival in Switzerland last week, a LOT of things have been breaking down all around Geneva. One of the recent casualties is the Compact Muon Spectrometer, and a shipment of new parts are due to arrive today from Norway, by truck. A shipment which MOTORMASTER means to hijack! "Faster, Dead End!" Motormaster growls, tearing down the motorway north out of Geneva on an intercept course with the route Breakdown's reported the shipment is following. "The Autobots have surely detected our energy signatures when we crossed into the Geneva sprawl. We can expect interference... hopefully it will be far too late!" Dead End speeds along as fast as he can go, not even taking too much care to try to avoid the traffic. They do the avoiding for him. Besides, as far as he's concerned, it doesn't really matter. "Really now... its all going to be the same in the end whether or not they show up. It doesn't really matter," Dead End replied to Motormaster, even if he knew that the Stunticon leader would just ignore what he said. If everyone listened to Dead End, no one would be fighting or doing much of anything really. He does continue on the path to the shipment though, given Motormaster's current state. From somewhere in the distance comes an engine emitting a winding drone, repeatedly shifting into higher and then lower octaves as it changes gears. Interspersed throughout the symphony is the hsssss-thmp of a turbo and the occasional squeal of skidding tires as a curve is taken just a little too fast. Soon Clutch's blue form comes into view. Decepticon ground forces reported in Geneva. Wait, Decepticon /ground/ forces? That's a report you don't see every day, and Clutch managed to convince some of the other Autobots that he should be part of the response. While the Decepticons were up to /no good/ as usual, the Autobots were up to /good/ as usual. It hadn't taken long for radio chatter to get back to Autobot City about a pair of vehicles with purple symbols bulldozing their way through traffic. As luck (none whatsoever) would have it, Jazz happened to be in the area along with Cluctch. <> Shifting gears, the white Porsche accelerates through traffic, weaving his way around cars as opposed to the Decepticons up ahead. Checking his sensors, the Autobot picks up two signatures, one of them larger than the other. <> Kenworth K100 Aerodyne considers the yellow hazard lights in his rear view mirror. "As I expected. Autobots." He spits out the words with audible disgust. "Dead End, you're faster than I am. Intercept and disable the truck carrying the shipment. Breakdown has put a tracking beacon on it. I'll slow these two down to give you time to work." With a loud clacking and grinding sound, Motormaster pulls himself up into his grim humanoid form. Motormaster transforms at full speed, cars squealing out of the way, horns blaring as he skids down the motorway, ripping the asphalt with his toes and the fingers of one hand to slow himself. Like a charging bull he roars back in the opposite direction, drawing his sword off his back as he heads straight for the Autobots closing in. "Autobots! Face me and face your DOOM!" Dead End sighs a bit, "Yeah, sure. Whatever." He says, speeding up and charging forward towards the shipment. "I just don't get the point to doing any of this. The Autobots are doomed anyways, so why bother with them?" At least he's not commenting on how things are all bad and pointless for the Stunticons now as it is. Combat: Motormaster sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Motormaster misses Blue Sportscar with his Scything Doom (Ruckus) Area attack! Combat: Motormaster misses White Porsche 935 with his Scything Doom (Ruckus) Area attack! Combat: Drained 7 energon. Blue Sportscar swerves hard and then swings around the sweep of the giant sword, wide performance tires grabbing the road and holding tight as his chassis rolls low to keep the turn radius tight. "You hear that Jazz? They're after that truck!" His trunk splits down the middle, both halves levering up and to the sides, and a small but sturdy looking turret pops out. "Something tells me we don't want them getting it!" Circling around the big Stunticon, the turret rips off a few bursts of metallic pellets at Motormaster. Combat: Blue Sportscar strikes Motormaster with his Pistol attack! Combat: Blue Sportscar (Clutch) used "Pistol": A Level 1 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 4 damage. If you check the car owner's manual in the glove-box, you won't find a section entitled: 4A - Avoiding Large Sword Wielding Robots. Even without the vital information, Jazz is still able to do exactly that. Speeding up to close distance between himself and Motormaster, the Porsche slams on the breaks and engages his rocking ABS systems to slide under the massive swing. <> Zipping around in a tight U-turn, the Porsche speeds up again, rolling its windows down as it approaches Motormaster. <> Aiming to drive right between the large Stunticon's legs, Jazz pumps up some armor-rattling Drum & Bass music. Combat: White Porsche 935 sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: White Porsche 935 misses Motormaster with his Drum & Bass FUNK attack! Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "180db Stereo Speakers": A Level 4 RANGED attack. Dead End is continuing to speed towards the contanter, not worrying about the Autobots. They are, for now, Motormaster's problem. That could all come quickly to an end though. Motormaster drives his swordpoint into the road surface to halt his forward momentum as both Autobots zip around or beneath him, peppering him with machinegun fire to boot! Swinging around the sword, he yanks it out and stows it as he hits the ground and accelerates back up the road in the direction of the target, trying to catch up to the slower of the two Autobots and ram him off the road. Other traffic either pulls out of the way or gets run down, cars spinning off of Motormaster's gleaming chrome bumper like tiddlywinks. "This is much larger than you, Autobots!" he booms as he closes in. "I'm going to resolve this campaign once and for all! Just think, if Earth wasn't in the picture we could all go home! You're not taking that away from me!" Motormaster slams his great mass to the ground, converting into a big black cabover semi. Combat: Kenworth K100 Aerodyne misses Blue Sportscar with his Bumper Buster attack! -5 Combat: Drained 5 energon. Blue Sportscar 's engine roars and he speeds just ahead of Motormaster, belatedly chasing after Dead End. The trio forms a weird sort of convoy - except that the 'leader' has left the rest of his file far behind. "Pretty good head start!" The Autocar shouts, before his voice turns a little more sly. "But nobody said this was a regulation race!" The turret swivels and aligns on the Dead End, then turns a few more degrees so that it's leading the Stunticon even more than necessary given the cars' relative speeds. A flurry of greenish pellets arc out to splatter the ground ahead of Dead End with acid, chewing into the surface. As the convoy moves Clutch walks the fire farther ahead of the speeding Decepticon, hoping to slow the Decepticon's progress. Combat: Blue Sportscar strikes Porsche 928 with his Rough Road Ahead (Grab) attack! <> In the blink of an optic, the Porsche driving alongside explodes upwards into its robotic form. While the laws of physics would largely squash this animation, WHO CARES?! With a spring of transformation momentum, Jazz sends himself through the air and onto the top of the huge semi. Landing with a thud, the Special Ops Commander works his way down the top of the vehicle, until he comes to the edge of the trailer. Lying down prone, he glances into the semi's cabin. "Ah ha!! Look at that crummy CD player! Here, let me put it out of it's misery!" Taking his solar-powered photon rifle out, Jazz takes aim at Motormaster's dashboard. *PEW* *PEW* Get on up! The Porsche 935 Turbo explodes upward into Jazz, Autobot Rock Star! Combat: Jazz strikes Kenworth K100 Aerodyne with his Solar-Powered Photon Rifle attack! -1 Combat: Jazz (Jazz) used "Solar-Powered Photon Rifle": A Level 3 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 3 damage. Dead End swerves a bit as the shots are fired, and while they don't hit him, they do hti the road ahead, as was their target. Try as he might to the contrary, Dead End does something that Stunticons rarely do when on the road. He slows down. It was bound to happen sooner or later, but certainly not one that he wanted to have to deal with. Of course, this also means that Dead End has an Autobot to deal with. "Guess they were bound to get by you Motormaster, huh?" The Stunticon was prepared though, his own vehicle mode weapons turning around to face behind him for the moment, firing off a stream of hastily aimed plasma shots at Clutch. "Just give up! You're doomed in the end anyways!" He says to the Autobot. Combat: Porsche 928 strikes Blue Sportscar with its Plasma-Energy Blaster attack! -3 "You vile irritant! You've gone too native to be saved! I despise your kind, did you know that? I harbor the deepest personal loathing for you and what you stand for; the dilution of our race with APE CULTURE. We are the Earthlings' superiors in every respect! We will be better off without them!" His poor tape player wrecked (how will he carry Laserbeak now?) Motormaster slams on his brakes, tires smoking as he tries to hurl Jazz off of his cab and then run over him with a surge of acceleration! Combat: Kenworth K100 Aerodyne misses Jazz with his Hitchhikers Expressly Forbidden by Company Policy attack! -4 Combat: Drained 8 energon. Blue Sportscar is just starting to catch up to Dead End when the plasma washes across his front bumper and hood. "NnnnG!" The Autobot grunts, in pain. But rather than decrease his own speed, Clutch begins going even faster. He bounces and bumps wildly over the torn-up road he himself created, but his frame seems to rise a bit on tires, reavealing heavy-duty suspension and he goes on...closer and closer to Dead End. Wait a second, he's not going to stop! Combat: Blue Sportscar strikes Porsche 928 with his Offensive Driving attack! "If you let Blaster take a look at ya, he can hook ya up with one a Panason....WOAAAAAHHH!!" Although Motormaster's sound system was now fried, his brakes were certainly in fine working order. As the huge semi slows to a quick stop, Jazz is flung from his position, scraping across the road ahead with a sound similar to nails on a chalkboard. "Yeeeoooww! There's no need to rock the boat ya big bully!" Diving out of the way of Motormaster's shiny grill, the Autobot rises with an incendiary missile attached to his shoulder. At least it's attached for a second. Focusing his blue targeting visor on the Decepticon's undercarriage, he sends the command to launch to his tactical systems and away the missile goes. "Ya just made Ponch angry pal!" FWWWOOOOOOSH! Combat: Jazz misses Kenworth K100 Aerodyne with his Ponch's Fury attack! -3 Combat: Jazz (Jazz) used "Flamethrower": A Level 4 RANGED attack. Dead End was slammed into from behind by Clutch's attack. Now, normally, that wouldn't be a good thing for cars. The thing is, Stunticons were MADE to crash into things. So when Dead End was rammed from behind, he felt it, but it didn't really do a whole lot of damage to him. "Did you? DId you really?" Dead End said, almost not believing what the Autobot did. "If you think that was a crash, then let a true Stunticon show you how its done!" He called out, speeding on ahead. Dead End then quickly turned back around, facing Clutch head on and floored it straight at the Autobot, ready to match him move for move and to slam into him as hard as he could. Combat: Porsche 928 sets its defense level to Fearless. Combat: Porsche 928 strikes Blue Sportscar with its Fender Bender attack! Kenworth K100 Aerodyne spins up into his robot mode, batting the missile away with a swift backhand to its side just before it can impact. It swirls away behind him and detonates against an overhead roadsign as Motormaster bears down on Jazz with the momentum he built up as a truck! "You don't know the MEANING of the word 'anger!'" With a loud clacking and grinding sound, Motormaster pulls himself up into his grim humanoid form. Combat: Motormaster misses Jazz with his Anger Means Furious Strangling attack! Combat: Drained 8 energon. He's got all the style of Michael Jackson (when he was 'normal' enough) and all the finesse of Muhammad Ali (back in the day). "Yo Motorola-Master! All that anger isn't good for your transmission!!" Leaping over the Stunticon Commander's massive arms. The Autobot lands in his Porsche mode. "You're liable to blow a gasket!" Revving up his powerful engine, Jazz peels out, racing towards Motormaster again. Once he's close enough, he turns up the volume on his speakers. If that isn't enough to distract the large foe, maybe his blinding headlights will do the trick. "Check it out! Perceptor hooked my headlights up with a new setting! SUPER-HIGH!" Break it down! With a flurry of sounds, Jazz drops down into a Porsche 935 Turbo. Combat: White Porsche 935 sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Motormaster with his Sound and Light Show attack! Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "Sound and Light Show": A Level 0 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: You took 0 damage. Combat: You can't seem to think straight... Combat: That attack has temporarily impaired Motormaster's Agility. (Crippled) Blue Sportscar gets slammed off of his tires by Dead End's charge and is sent in a tumbling rollover that finally ends with Clutch on his side next to the divider. Only by forcefully swinging his door open does the Autobot manage to flip back onto his wheels again. Clutch lands, bounces once on stiffened suspension, then settles down on the road again. But he shows signs of the impact - spiderweb cracks on glass surfaces, dents and chips all over his roof and both sides. Revving his engine once more, the Nissan lurches into motion. "Gotta admit, you pack quite a punch there," he says to Dead End as he pulls out down the street. "Let's see if you can take it!" The turret, miraculously undamaged during all the tumbling, swings around to unleash more acid pellets as he races along, trying to hose down the Stunticon's hood and windshield. Combat: Blue Sportscar strikes Porsche 928 with his Acid Pellets attack! Motormaster staggers, a hand to his face as he flails around blindly. He'd try to find Jazz by sound, but he's also temporarily deafened in addition to being dazzled, so no such luck. "Perhaps I should crush Perceptor NEXT! Dead End, what's the status of the mission?" Combat: Motormaster's Failing Flailing attack on White Porsche 935 goes wild! Combat: Motormaster strikes Porsche 928 with his Failing Flailing attack! -3 Combat: Gained 1 energon. The acid pellets strike Dead End's form, chewing away at the hood and windshield. "We can take it just fi-" He says before, out of what seems to be nowhere... MOTORMASTER! The Stunticon leader's flailing manages to hit Dead End, causing even more damage and denting to the maroon car. "It'd be doing better if you'd watch where you're attacking you big lummox! Always knew you'd be the death of me..." Regardless, the Stunticon continued his driving, spinning his tires and shooting straight at Clutch once more, trying to ram into his side and just shove him out of the fight for the time being. "Come on now, get out of here. You're going to die anyways, so why bother?" Combat: Porsche 928 strikes Blue Sportscar with its You Need More Dents (Ram) attack! Blue Sportscar is slammed into by the Porsche (the evil Porsche that is, not the good one). "AGH!" And he does indeed sport a few more dents now. Clutch is almost driven off of the road but then suddenly summons a surge of determination (and horsepower) and turns his wheels, pushing the Stunticon into the divider in the middle of the roadway instead. Just before impact Clutch pulls away, with a shouted, "It's no bother!" Alas, no time for more clever quips. Combat: Blue Sportscar misses Porsche 928 with his Stay in Your Lane! (Punch) attack! <> Racing a few victory circles around the temporarily blind Decepticon, the Porsche eventually pops up again into Jazz. The Autobot was clearly outmatched in strength, but he hoped he could be enough of a distraction to thrwart any evil-doing plan that was in the works. "Yo Tin-Grin! You ever seen a Jackie Chan movie?! No?? Alright, here's a taste!" Charging Motormaster, Jazz pulls off a quick front-flip and lands with a tumble that turns into a leg sweep. "Haaaah Yeeaa homie!" Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Motormaster with his Auto-Kwan-Do (Kick) attack! Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "Kick": A Level 2 MELEE attack. Combat: You took 2 damage. Get on up! The Porsche 935 Turbo explodes upward into Jazz, Autobot Rock Star! Motormaster trips over Jazz's sweeping leg, and hits the ground hard, but undaunted. "You've got a lot of nerve making an enemy of me, Jazz. Why, if the other Stunticons were here you'd be little more than a smear beneath Menasor's heel. I hope you enjoy the upper hand while you can retain it!" Swinging his own leg out across the motorway as he climbs back to his feet, Motormaster attempts to hurl Jazz into the breakdown lane. Combat: You are already in that mode! Combat: Motormaster misses Jazz with his Kick attack! Combat: Drained 2 energon. Dead End speeds on ahead of Clutch, heading after the shipment once more. His sudden boost of speed is enough to keep the Autobot from doing what he will. "Face it Autobot. Your time as the rulers of the road have long passed. It was inevitable..." The Stunticon said. He didn't bother with attacking Clutch, thinking that the Autobot had finally learned his lesson and backed off. Instead, he opened up fire on the transport for the shipment, keeping his aim steady as the plasma shots flew out towards the tires, to cause a blow out. Or at least hitting the ground around the transport. Its not as easy as it looks to hit the wheels at these speeds. Combat: Porsche 928 takes extra time to steady itself. Pass Blue Sportscar swerves and chases after Dead End. "Hey...hey! Don't forget about us! You think we're just gonna let you clowns load up whatever's in there and drive off with it?!" He races towards the stricken transport and then transforms into robot mode, running the last few steps until his speed bleeds off. Trying to position himself between Dead End and the target, Clutch pulls out a cylindrical device that contains some kind of glowing liquid...and then immediately jabs it into his own side. Clutch transforms into robot mode! Combat: Clutch quickly patches up some of his minor injuries. Whatever Ener-Wheaties™ Jazz had throw down this morning, they were certainly giving the Autobot a little extra speed today. As Motormaster's heavy leg swings toward him, the Intelligence Director fires up an evasive maneuver. "Not gonna let ya play kick ball with me just yet ya big ugly!" Performing a cart-wheel that would make any gymnast jealous, Jazz is able to navigate himself over a lane divider. "Look at the energon beads drippin' down your mug Moto! When's the last time you had a tune-up?!" Crouching behind the lane divider wall, Jazz quick-draws his rifle for another attack. Combat: Jazz sets his defense level to Guarded. Combat: Jazz strikes Motormaster with his Photon Beam In The Optic attack! -1 Combat: Jazz (Jazz) used "Solar-Powered Photon Rifle": A Level 3 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 5 damage. "As it so happens, that is exactly what we think," Motormaster replies, hitting the ground and revving his engine, blue diesel smoke puffing out of his stacks. "After we crush you into the road barriers, that is!" His tires screech as he releases the clutch and takes off after Clutch, to try to pin him against the cement sound-damping barriers that run along the motorway. Jazz's laser shots pwang into the sides of his trailer, leaving scorch marks that do not slow him down even a little bit. Motormaster slams his great mass to the ground, converting into a big black cabover semi. Combat: Kenworth K100 Aerodyne strikes Clutch with his King of the Road attack! Combat: You are running low on energon! Combat: Drained 20 energon. Dead End saw Clutch right infront of him. The Autobot seriously didn't seem to have learned from before. "You're my kind of 'Bot... eager to just get it over with." Dead End said, flooring it as fast as he could. "I suppose a little more Autobot on the grill never hurt a car. It'll all be junk in the end. Now move it or lose it you pathetic excuse for a stunt racer!" Dead End called out as he once more tried to slam himself right into Clutch. Combat: Porsche 928 misses Clutch with its Fender Bender attack! Jazz pumps a blue fist into the air as his rifle attack lands, but he doesn't have much more time to celebrate. Motormaster blazes off down the highway before he barrels into his team mate! Dropping back down into his alternate mode, Jazz accelerates down the now-desolate road. <> Zooming into range of the trio of Cybertronians, the Porsche slams on its brakes before it peels out again for a series of donuts. That's when the race car suddenly starts spewing out a thick-black smoke from it's tail-pipe. Only this doesn't look like an engine problem. <> Break it down! With a flurry of sounds, Jazz drops down into a Porsche 935 Turbo. Combat: White Porsche 935 sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Porsche 928 with his Secret Agent Exhaust Area attack! Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Porsche 928 's Accuracy. (Blinded) Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Kenworth K100 Aerodyne with his Secret Agent Exhaust Area attack! Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "Full-Spectrum Beacon": A Level 0 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: You took 0 damage. Combat: That attack has temporarily affected Kenworth K100 Aerodyne 's Accuracy. (Blinded) Clutch gets smashed into the barrier by Motormaster, optics widened in shock. For a moment he's pinned in place...but then the section of wall begins to collapse all around him and he stumbles back at the sudden lack of resistance. Good thing, too, because that's all that keeps him from becoming a hood ornament for Dead End as the Evil Porsche barrels through the space Clutch was occupying a second ago. Then Jazz takes the heat off with a well-placed distraction. Scrabbling away through the rubble of the wall under cover of the exhaust, Clutch finally appears at the edge of the smoke cloud. Panels open all over his form and missiles fwooooosh out in a ripple launch that makes Clutch sway back and forth. All of the warheads head directly into the cloud and whoever's left inside. Combat: Clutch sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Clutch strikes Kenworth K100 Aerodyne with his Micro Missiles Area attack! Combat: Clutch (Clutch) used "Micro Missiles": A Level 6 AREA-RANGED attack. Combat: You took 13 damage. Combat: Clutch strikes Porsche 928 with his Micro Missiles Area attack! Kenworth K100 Aerodyne can be heard transforming in the smoke (and shrapnel) cloud covering the motorway, clanging around as he finds his way by feel. "Ahh, the fog of war! This smoke is an OPPORTUNITY. Dead End, keep them busy!" There is a screeching sound, as of Motormaster ripping something open with his bare hands, and then a clanging. With a loud clacking and grinding sound, Motormaster pulls himself up into his grim humanoid form. Combat: Motormaster sets his defense level to Protected. Combat: Motormaster takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Combat: You are running low on energon! Combat: Regained 4 energon. Dead End slowed down heavily once again as the smoke began to billow forth, keeping him from accurately seeing anything. This includes Clutch's Micro Missiles, which slam into his form and tear into the armor and tires some, slowing the Stunticon down even more than his own breaks did. "Why you little..." Is all he says as he drives around, still rather speedily and recklessly. He muttered a bit as he heard Motormaster. "Yeah! Fine... ya blowhard..." He said. Thus, Dead End speeds up, moving himself towards where he last saw Clutch and Jazz, driving around. "Lets see you out run a blind and reckless driver you poor excuses for four wheeled mechs!" Combat: Porsche 928 strikes Clutch with its Run You All Over (Ruckus) Area attack! Combat: Porsche 928 strikes White Porsche 935 with its Run You All Over (Ruckus) Area attack! Clutch gets bowled over by Dead End's attack, then hears a similar collision noise as the Stunticon no doubt treats Jazz to the same. Rolling to his feet, Clutch aims a heavy-duty pistol after the car form. "I don't think I'm gonna be driving anywhere for a while...but pretty soon neither will you!" He promises grimly. Combat: Clutch strikes Porsche 928 with his Laser attack! There was a good and bad in spewing out loads of black smoke. Obviously it helped the Autobots with some cover but it also concealed the Decepticons in the process. Oh and there was another bad. Dead End. CRASH! As the other Porsche hammers his into rear-quarter panel, Jazz is flung around in a spin before he comes to a halt. <> Wondering where Motormaster has lumbered off too, the Porsche makes a change to his mp3 player before he sends another blast of annoying music into the thick smoke. <> Combat: White Porsche 935 strikes Motormaster with his Lady Gaga Strikes Again attack! -1 Combat: White Porsche 935 (Jazz) used "180db Stereo Speakers": A Level 3 RANGED attack. Combat: You took 6 damage. Motormaster stomps out of the cloud, clutching a large crate in his arms and looking a little disoriented from the Gaga Assault. "We've done enough here! Dead End, transform and roll out!" He transfers the crate to his trailer as he transforms, rumbling on down the motorway, heading north and weaving a bit until the ringing in his gyros wears off. Motormaster slams his great mass to the ground, converting into a big black cabover semi. Combat: Kenworth K100 Aerodyne begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from White Porsche 935 "Transform!? Into my robot mode?! I knew you were nuts Motormaster, but that's just stupid!" Dead End called out, staying in his car mode and chasing after the giant trailer. He wasn't going to try to stick around now for finishing off the Autobots. He'll just let things happen as they happen, and their let their end come real soon. Plus, he's beat up enough as it is, and his systems are hating him just a bit now. Combat: Porsche 928 begins retreating, leaving itself vulnerable to parting shots from White Porsche 935 "I was disoriented! Stow your smart mouth, Dead End!" booms Motormaster warningly. "You're lucky you were close enough to the objective for that smoke cloud to encompass it as well as you, or I might have to take out my frustration on you! Instead we can congratulate ourselves on a job well done... even if I would've liked to have humbled the Autobots more, in an ideal world." At this point Jazz could certainly pursue Motormaster and Dead End. He could probably catch up to them too, but enough was enough. The highway bash had left the area in shambles as well as a few humans with major car repair bills. <> The Decepticons had managed to get away with who-knows-what, but at least there weren't any humans hurt in the process. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Reports ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Message: 9/7 Posted Author Minor News Story Wed Jul 28 Motormaster ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ It almost goes unnoticed, but sharp-eyed (or paranoid) current events enthusiasts can read on bbc.co.uk about a truck hijacking in Switzerland. It seems that Motormaster and Dead End intercepted and robbed a truck carrying parts for the Compact Muon Spectrometer, part of the Large Hadron Collider intended to detect the long-sought Higgs Boson. The CMS broke down recently as the culmination of a spate of inexplicable infrastructure failures in and around Geneva, and was to be replaced, but the replacement was stolen. Although Autobots Jazz and Clutch bravely came to the rescue, preventing human casualties, the location of the CMS at this time is unknown. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Autobot ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Message: 3/139 Posted Author TO:perceptor SUBJECT:WTH Thu Jul 29 Roadbuster ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Roadbuster appears on screen, looking as dour as he can, considering he hasn't got a face. He is standing in front of a composite projection containing a news story about Motormaster in Switzerland (See bb 9/7) "Perceptor, I know you'd be the best one to ask, although anyone else who knows is welcome to answer up. Motormaster apparantly stole a.." Roadbuster checks his notes. "A 'Compact Muon Spectrometer'. I want to know WHAT it does and how our absurdly smart 'pal' Menasor might be planning to use it. Whatever it is, it'll be /big/. He wants to wipe out the whole planet, or at least everything on it, so we need to know /stat/ what he's up to and how to stop it." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------